Dr. Miggy's Healthy Blog for Busy Folks on Tight Budgets » get healthy

Quick and Cheap Dinner: Creamy Lemon Pasta

drmiggy — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:00:45 +0000

I love healthy pasta recipes. They are usually quick to prepare, filling, and they make great leftovers. I’m always on the hunt for a new veggie combo or a simple and tasty sauce to dress a pasta. Lucky me, this recipe has both.

Snow peas throw me for a loop. I am never sure what to do with them other than throw them into a stir fry, where their subtleties can get overtaken by a spiced-up Asian sauce. Not so with Creamy Lemon Pasta. Their crispy sweetness is a great match for the lemony tang of the yogurt sauce in this recipe. The color combo of the squash, peas and red pepper just screams “VITAMINS!!!”.

Look at their cute faces!

I adapted the recipe from New Vegetarian Cuisine, putting my own little spin on things. I didn’t have the fusilli the recipe called for, but I did have enough shells and rotini to make the 12 ounces of pasta. Mixing pasta shapes creates playful texture, too. The tip in this recipe that is genius: adding cornstarch to the yogurt to prevent it from curdling when added to the pasta. It worked like magic…or chemistry.

When I make a pasta, I will round out a meal with a simple salad consisting of bagged greens, a few olives, maybe some crumbled feta. I’ve started eating salads without dressing, opting instead for olives and a sprinkle of chesse. I honestly don’t miss it.

Creamy Lemon Pasta

Serves 4
Total time: 20 minutes
Cost per serving: about $3

6 ounce container of plain yogurt
1/4 cup vegetable or stock
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons cornstarch
12 ounces short pasta like shells, rotini, or fusilli
1 medium yellow squash
1 red pepper
4 green onions
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 cup snow peas
1 teaspoon dried fines herbs (optional)

Set a large pot of water to boil
In a small bowl mix the yogurt, stock, lemon juice and cornstarch; set aside.
While the water is heating up, thinly slice the squash and chop the red pepper and green onion. I used my food processor to make short work of this step.
Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to the package, usually 8 to 10 minutes. Heat the oil in no-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add the chopped and sliced veggies and the snow peas. Cook for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
Drain the pasta and add to a large bowl. Add the cooked veggies, yogurt sauce, and dried herbs. Stir to combine and serve.

Check out all the fiber, vitamin C and iron in this recipe. Thank you, snow peas!

Quick and Cheap Dinner: Balsamic Lentil Stew

drmiggy — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:30:39 +0000

The temperature has dipped below 85 degrees, and that can only mean one thing in Houston: Fall has arrived. I know what you northerners are thinking, and you are probably right. Sixty-five degrees is hardly bundle-up weather, but in Houston it can still elicit the desire for wool socks and bowls of thick and steaming autumn stews.

Stew can be quick if you use the right ingredients. This recipe from New Vegetarian Cuisine is a perfect example. The trick is to use red lentils if you can find them, which are actually yellow lentils with the outer husk removed. Whole Foods has them in the bulk section, but you may also be able to find them at larger grocery stores amongst the dried beans. They are a bright orange color and turn yellow once they are cooked. Bonus points: Lentils have plenty of iron, protein and fiber. If you can’t find red lentils you can substitute green or brown, but the cooking time will need to be extended by 10-15 minutes.

I modified the recipe in New Vegetarian Cuisine by using yellow potatoes, which hold up better to cooking than regular baking potatoes. If, like me, you like chunks of potato in your stew try using Yukon Golds. I also switched out the tarragon for basil because I had some left over from the Mediterranean Olive Bread I made, and it’s easier to find in most grocery stores. If you use a food processor to shred the veggies, this dish comes together in minutes. Did I mention how much I love my new food processor? I don’t even mind that I have to wash it by hand (since I don’t have a dish washer).

Balsamic Lentil Stew

Lentil Stew Action Shot!

Makes 4 heaping servings
Total time 25 minutes
Cost for the whole pot ~$7-8

4 cups water
1 1/4 cups red lentils
2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes
ground black pepper
5-6 green onions
2 carrots
1 medium zucchini
1 medium yellow squash
2 large cloves garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
1-2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Cut the potatoes into cubes. In a large pot, combine the water, lentils, potatoes and pepper (to your liking) and bring to a boil. Cover the pot and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for about 15 minutes.
While the lentils are cooking, chop the green onions and grate the carrots, zucchini and squash. You can also use the grater on a food processor for the veggies. Finely chop the garlic.
In a large no-stick frying pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions, veggies and garlic and cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently.
Once the carrots are softened, add the veggie mixture to the lentils. Mix in the basil and vinegar and heat through another 2-3 minutes. Serve in big bowls. You won’t need another meal for about 8 hours.

Food Pr0n: Mediterranean Olive Bread

drmiggy — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 03:35:33 +0000

In spite of my initial failures, I’ve had one vegan baking success this weekend. This aromatic quick bread caught my eye while flipping through The Joy of Vegan Baking because it looked foolproof. What can I say, my ego took a beating and I needed a sure thing.

I prepared the recipe almost as directed and scraped it into a springform pan, just for shits and giggles. You could also make a loaf if you don’t have a round pan. I omitted the sun-dried tomatoes, simply because I really don’t care for them and they are expensive. The rosemary and freshly baked bread aroma that filled my little apartment had me drooling in anticipation. It was torture to let the loaf cool. I popped open the springform pan and immediately cut the loaf into wedges. The texture is similar to focaccia, and the pungent olives, piney rosemary and sweet crunch of the walnuts complement each other perfectly. This bread would be great along side an autumn lentil stew or a minestrone soup. Alternatively, you could just eat half the loaf by yourself for dinner, which I totally didn’t do.

Mediterranean Olive Bread

Adapted from The Joy of Vegan Baking
Yield one standard sized loaf

no-stick spray
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cups whole wheat flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons chopped fresh basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 1/2 teaspoons Ener-G egg replacer
6 tablespoons water
1 cup soy milk
1/4 cup olive oil
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup chopped pitted black olives

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a loaf pan (square, rectangle or round, whatever curls your toes) with no-stick spray.
In a large bowl, mix the flours, baking powder, chopped herbs and salt. Set aside.
In a blender combine the egg replacer and water until thickened a little. The recipe calls for enough egg replacer for 3 eggs, so I suppose you could just use eggs. I didn’t test it, though. Add the soy milk and olive oil to the blender and mix until combined.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and fold until almost all of the dry ingredients are moistened. Add the walnuts and olives and fold in just until combined. Don’t over mix or the bread will get tough.
Scoop the batter into your prepared pan, evening it out with a spoon or rubber spatula. Bake until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, 30-40 minutes depending on the pan you use. Just check it after 30 minutes and if the knife is goopy then let it bake for 5-10 minutes longer. The top crust should be a light brown and feel hard to the touch. My round pan only required 30 minutes, but an 8-inch loaf pan will probably need the entire 40 minutes.
Let the bread cool in the pan on a rack or trivet for at least 10 minutes. Remove the bread from the pan and let cool completely, if you can stand the wait.

Food Pr0n: Jumping Pepita Quesadilla

drmiggy — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 23:56:15 +0000

Cheese, glorious Cheese!

I always end up with a bunch of leftover parsley or cilantro and I’m never quite sure how to use it up. I saw this quesadilla recipe in my Phytopia Cookbook and thought the parsley spread was a clever way to prevent waste. Turns out that parsley is chock full of Vitamins A, C and Iron. And this recipe is versatile. You could make all kinds of parsley spreads using this basic recipe. Switch out the nuts, add some lemon juice, maybe throw in a few olives…just use your imagination and whatever you have laying around. I think a version of the paste would be excellent as a “sauce” for whole wheat pasta.

I renamed the recipe Jumping Pepita Quesadilla because:

I’m a big dork
The pumpkin seeds really do jump when you toast them, which I find entertaining

The Phytopia Cookbook is teh shizz. I’ve used mine heavily for many years and it’s all banged up and warped from spillage. All of the recipes I’ve tried are insanely healthy and delicious. Go buy it, you will love it.

Jumping Pepita Quesadillas

Adapted from The Phytopia Cookbook. You will need a food processor for this recipe.

Serves 4

For the spread:
1/3 cup raw unsalted pepitas (pumpkin seeds, found in the bulk section of Whole Foods or in the Mexican food section of larger grocery stores)
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 1/2 cups fresh cilantro, rinsed and dried
1 cup fresh parsley leaves, rinsed and dried
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil

For the ‘dilla:
1 medium tomato
8 whole-wheat flour tortillas
1 cup grated Cheddar or Mexican blend cheese

Toast pumpkin seeds in a dry skillet over medium-high heat for a few minutes. They will start to jump and pop. Giggle with glee. Stir the seeds to prevent burning.
Mince jalapeno and garlic in a food processor. Careful, son. That’s raw garlic!
Add the remaining spread ingredients and process until you have a paste.
Finely dice the tomato. Assemble the ‘dilla by smearing 1/4 of the spread on a tortilla. Sprinkle with 1/4 of the tomato and about 1/4 cup of the cheese. Top with a second tortilla. Repeat for the remaining quesadillas.
Place each quesadilla in a skillet over medium high heat. Cook on each side until toasted, a few minutes. Cut into wedges and serve.

Uploaded with plasq‘s Skitch!

I have a bonus feature for you. I calculated the nutritional value of each ‘dilla on NutriMirror.com. Check out the numbers on this thing! Can you believe how nutritious a quesadilla can be? And this spread is yummy! If you are concerned about the fat and sodium, simply use low fat cheese and reduce the amount of salt in the spread.

Food Pr0n: Fig and Chile Pasta

drmiggy — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 01:54:27 +0000

I am making a new category for those dishes that aren’t exactly complete “dinners” but that deserve your attention nonetheless. Laura Jean, kick-ass photog, helped me come up with the name. I asked her for advice on food photography, to which she responded:

When I first started shooting pro, I was told “get down close and shoot it like porn”…and natural light is best.

Check out Laura’s tasty food photos here.

She was right. Is this too much? It is, isn’t it.

Figs are said to be an aphrodisiac

Fig and Chile Pasta

Adapted from this recipe on Culinate.com. You should check out Culinate, it’s all about being healthy and conscientious while not totally depriving yourself.

Serves 4-6 as a side dish

12 dried figs
2 lemons
1- 6 oz container plain fat-free yogurt
12 oz whole-wheat fettuccine
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 fresh chile, seeded and finely chopped (don’t do what I did and dose yourself with too much chile. Ouch!)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Put a large pot of salted water on to boil.
Cut figs in halves or quarters and place cut-side up on a plate. I chose to use dried figs because the fresh ones at Whole Foods looked manky that day.
Grate the zest from the lemons and squeeze the juice of one lemon into the yogurt. Stir in the lemon zest.
Once you have achieved a righteous boil on the water, add the pasta and cook according to the package.
Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. I cut the amount from the original recipe in half, just cuz. Add the figs and chile and cook for a couple of minutes. When the mixture looks softened remove it from the heat.
Drain the fettuccine, return it to the pot and stir in the lemon yogurt, the Parmesan and the fig and chile mixture. Serve immediately.

Plain yogurt makes a quick and healthy pasta sauce a la alfredo…stop laughing. OK, it’s not exactly alfredo, but it IS tasty. Is there anything yogurt can’t do? The final product is pictured below, next to the Heirloom Tomato Salad I wrote about on Houstonist.

My Newest Obsession: NutriMirror.com

drmiggy — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 18:56:07 +0000

A friend of mine turned me on to Nutrimirror.com, a website where you can log your daily exercise and food intake. NutriMirror keeps a running total of the nutrients you are taking in, which can help you plan fitness goals like weight loss. There are all kinds of tools, counters and calculators that can help you keep track of diet and exercise. Some upfront quality time is necessary to get the full benefits of the site, but NutriMirror is very easy to use once you spend a few days playing with it. The coolest feature is that your information is presented graphically, with the goal being to stay in the green (you’ve met your RDA) and avoid the red (you’ve over/under consumed).

I’ve been using NutriMirror for the past week, diligently logging my food choices and exercise. I’ll be totally honest: I’ve had a reality check this week. I AM NOT AS HEALTHY AS I THOUGHT. I have been consuming far too much saturated fat and I’m embarrassingly deficient in Iron and Vitamins A, D and E. Wow. Here I thought I was doing so well, but as it turns out there are problems with my diet that I never considered.

I’m glad I found out, because NutriMirror has changed the way I think about the food I buy and eat. Faced with having to log a fun-sized Snicker bar and it’s 1.1 g of sat fat, I skip the candy jar at work. On days when I log as I eat, I can make decisions about later meals based on what I’ve already eaten. If I’ve overdone it with the fat at lunch and need more Iron, I’ll head for the lentils and spinach for dinner. There’s an educational component, too. When I’m a deficient in a nutrient I’m not that familiar with (what the hell is Vitamin K?), I can click on the nutrient and NutriMirror tells me what it’s good for and what I can eat to get more of it. I decided that until I can figure out how to get enough of all nutrients in my diet I will need to take a few supplements.

Because NutriMirror graphs dietary trends over days, I get an idea of how my diet overall is adding up. We all have those days when we indulge in birthday cake at work. By looking at trends in my diet those birthday cake days get balanced out with those days when my will power is made of steel.

If I sound like a commercial for NutriMirror it’s because I believe consistent use of this FREE tool is going to change my eating habits in a way I could not do on my own. I enthusiastically encourage anyone to try it out for a week, just to see how everything adds up. Even if you don’t make drastic changes, I think some of that knowledge will seep into your unconscious, helping you to make better decisions.

Book Review: The Food Revolution by John Robbins

drmiggy — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 23:53:47 +0000

A few weeks ago I wrote that I went on a book buying binge with the intent of brushing up on my knowledge of cancer prevention. Since then, I have spent my evenings reading The Food Revolution: How Your Diet Can Help Save Your Life and Our World by John Robbins.

Weighing in at close to 400 pages, The Food Revolution is no light read. And then there’s Robbins’ preachiness and occasionally maudlin anecdotes to muddle through. If you can get past the obstacles, there is quite a bit of useful information. Robbins did his homework and references his sources like an academic, which he is not. There is too much repetition, though, and I think the book could have been whittled down to half the size.

I will summarize each of the sections so you can decide if you want to investigate further:

Section 1: Your risk of cancer, heart disease, diabetes and other diseases is greatly increased if you eat an animal-based diet. Conversely, a plant based diet has been shown to reduce these risks. I checked one of Robbins’ sources, the American Institute for Cancer Research report titled “Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity and the Prevention of Cancer“. The scope of this project is impressive. A panel of scientists and reviewers gathered the medical literature over the last few decades and summarized it to 8 key recommendations for preventing cancer. Recommendations #4 and 5: eat a plenty of plant foods and avoid animal foods, respectively. I recommend you read the 12 page summary if you are interested in learning more.

Robbins continues by warning that many food borne pathogens like salmonella originate from animal foods, yet another reason to reduce their consumption if your health is a concern.

Section 2: The factory farm industry is cruel to animals. Duh.

Section 3: The largest polluters of our air, soil and water are the meat and dairy industries. Their impact on our environment doesn’t stop there. Millions of acres of rain forest have been cleared and countless species have gone extinct so that crops to feed meat animals can be grown. This occurs in countries where a large part of the population has barely enough food to live on. So in a sense, the land of the poor is being co-opted to feed the wealthy. Ick.

Section 4: Genetic engineering is scary because no one is doing the proper research to assess it’s impact on native species. Likewise, no one knows if there are any harmful effects that may arise from the consumption of these foods.

Do I believe every word in The Food Revolution? No. While Robbins’ does a thorough job of citing his references, there are a few arguments here and there that seem to be based on speculation rather than hard scientific evidence. Nonetheless, some very good points are made. By reducing your consumption of animal products you substantially reduce your risk of disease and take huge steps towards protecting the environment. I like to think of my approach as “flirting with vegetarianism”. I have reduced my consumption of animal products to a few meals a week. I’m still not certain if I will go 100% vegetarian, but I’m starting down that path. To me, the best form of health insurance is to do whatever I can to reduce my risk of disease. I call it growing my health fund.

Cancer Prevention Edu-ma-cation

drmiggy — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 02:06:20 +0000

I recently went on an Amazon.com book buying binge in order to educate myself on cancer prevention. I know what you’re thinking. Dr. Miggy, don’t you already know this stuff? Nope. It’s like one of my prof’s kids said, “You’re a doctor but you don’t help people.” I know some things, common sense like smoking is bad and foods with antioxidants are good, but my “authority” on prevention ends with what most of us can get out of magazines. I do have the advantage of understanding the biochemistry behind the ideas that will be discussed in my new books. Couple that with my culinary ambitions and what you’ll get is the most cancer-ass-kicking recipes on the web. Or at least this is how I imagine it when I’m speaking in my fake French accent on my pretend cooking show that airs twice a week in my closet kitchen.

If you go to my shelfari virtual bookshelf, you’ll see what I’m up to. Nevermind “Walter the Farting Dog”, I want you to focus on the last four books I added. See? I’m going to read all of that info and distill it into domestic/scientific geekery the likes of which the internet has never seen!

Want to Lose Weight Quick? Eat Breakfast.

drmiggy — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 03:53:39 +0000

I was visiting a friend this weekend and noticed that she lost considerable weight since I saw her about a month ago. She looked 10-15 pounds lighter, so I asked her how she did it. Her response surprised me, but it shouldn’t have.

“I started eating breakfast.”

Me, “That’s it?!?”

“Yep.”

This guy has the right idea

Some of you have seen my previous post on eating breakfast. I’m a big proponent of the morning meal. Turns out that, according to sources cited in this WebMD article, folks who eat breakfast regularly have a reduced incidence of obesity and are able to keep weight off longer. The reasons are varied, from staving off bad snack choices and binge eating to ramping up your metabolism earlier in the day so you can burn off fat longer. I find that when I don’t eat breakfast I have trouble concentrating at work and I make excuses to skip exercising in the evening because I’m wiped by the end of the day.

So what are your best choices? Anything with low calorie density, which means you get a lot of bulk (yay fiber!) for fewer calories. Here are a few of my favorite kick-ass-cheap-and-easy breakfast ideas:

Oatmeal with low fat milk and prunes (aka Colon Blow)
A slice of whole wheat bread with peanut butter and banana
Low fat yogurt and a piece of fruit, whatever is in season
Whole wheat tortilla, a few slices of smoked turkey and some low fat cheese rolled up

The idea is to combine something with fiber with a low fat protein. I confess that when I’m regularly exercising I need two small “breakfast snacks” before noon. I usually start with yogurt and save the high fiber snack for when I get to my desk. Spreading it out like that helps keep my hunger at bay until lunch.

Will you accept a breakfast challenge? Try to eat breakfast at least five days a week for the next four weeks. I’d love to know if you see any difference in your health, whether it’s weight loss, more energy, or a reduction in snacking, binging and cravings.

Photo credit Elston

How I (Plan To) Exercise While Traveling

drmiggy — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 04:12:54 +0000

I’ve been logging a lot of mileage lately, and you’re probably wondering how I keep up the exercise routine while I’m traveling. The simple answer is: I don’t. Until now.

I started jumping rope and using resistance bands the past two weeks in preparation for all the traveling I’m doing this summer. Check out my gear:

I know this will fit in your suitcase

That’s a light resistance band, a jump rope with a built-in counter, and medium resistance band. All three weigh less than a pound total and I can fit them easily into the front pocket of my carry-on roller bag. I’ve been working on a routine where I start off jumping rope for a minute, then I do three sets of resistance training, another round of jumping rope, another 3 sets of resistance exercises and so on. I repeat the intervals until I’ve gotten to each major muscle group (legs, biceps/triceps, back, chest, shoulders). I finish off with 150 crunches in five different flavors (30 reps of each). This routine takes me about 40 minutes to complete.

With so many distractions in Chicago, it will be difficult to stay on my routine. I’m gonna try my best and let you know how I fare. Wish me luck!